EXPERIENCED striker Chris Beardsley says the battle to help Bristol Rovers retain Football League status over the remaining eight games of the season is one the players should relish.

Rovers have been dragged back into the mire at the wrong-end of the League Two table after failing to record a victory in their last four games.

They resume their battle to widen the three-point gap between themselves and the relegation zone when they welcome Morecambe to the Memorial Stadium tomorrow, and Beardsley said: "It is all in our own hands and we know what we have to do.

"We have to relish the challenge that is in front of us and I don't think there is anything to fear. There's nothing to be scared of.

"Football is our job and our career and being able to cope with these situations and knowing what we need to get out of them is all part and parcel of that.

"I've been in this sort of situation a couple of times and, while you have to understand the importance of every game, you also have to enjoy it.

"These sort of games are what you are in football for. You don't want to be playing in dead rubbers you want to be playing in games that have something on them. You can't be fearful or unnerved by these sorts of games or you won't play to your full potential.

"That is why it is best to look only at the next game and put all your energies into focusing on that. That is the best way to approach it and I think everybody at the club should be looking at it in that way.

"We know where we are, but it is pointless getting wrapped up in the league table or going off on a tangent thinking too far ahead or about other things.

"We have eight games left, but I don't think we should be looking any further ahead than the game against Morecambe.

"We need to get three points on the board and a result that would start moving the club forward in a positive momentum and only then should we start thinking about the next one."

Chairman Nick Higgs and manager John Ward have both issued public calls for unity during a week in which the plummeting form of the team has persuaded disgruntled supporters to voice grievances over the situation.

"The fans have been superb and their continued support is vital," Beardsley, pictured, said. "We need to get the Mem rocking again and the only way we can do that is to play to our potential.

"There are many times the supporters could have turned against us this season and our results at home show that they do have a positive impact.

"It has to be the same again on Saturday, but we know that we have to give those supporters something to shout about. We know that they will get right behind us if we can do that early doors."

Ward described the mood in the Rovers camp as "fine" 48 hours on from what was a disappointing 3-1 defeat at the hands of Fleetwood Town on Tuesday night, and Beardsley added: "I don't think there is a nervousness around the place.

"It is more a feeling of grim determination to put things right because we didn't do ourselves justice at Fleetwood on Tuesday night.

"We haven't performed to the standards we expect from ourselves over the last four games. That is plain and simple for all to see. Our next chance to start the process of putting that right comes on Saturday.

"We need to forget about what has happened in the last four games or what happened in the six games we were unbeaten before that. All that is important is what happens on Saturday. It really is as simple as that for me."